1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a light source apparatus and a projector.
2. Description of the Related Art
In these days, data projectors are used on many occasions as image projection units which project images including images of screens of personal computers and video images, as well as images based on image data which is stored in memory cards on to a screen. In these projectors, light emitted from a light source is collected on to a micromirror display device called a digital micromirror device (DMD) or a liquid crystal plate for projection of color images on to a screen.
As the use of imaging equipment such as personal computers and DVD players has spread, the application of such data projectors has spread from the business or commercial use, for example, in which they are used as means for presentation to the domestic use. Conventionally, the mainstream of these projectors has been those which use a high-intensity discharge lamp as a light source. However, in recent years, there have been made many developments and proposals on data projectors which use, as a light source, semiconductor light emitting elements such as LEDs and laser diodes.
Then, for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2007-157548 (JP-A-2007-157548) discloses a light source apparatus which enhances the light utilization efficiency by taking into consideration luminous intensity distribution characteristics which change based on shapes of red, green and blue LED chips and colors of light emitted therefrom and a projector which includes the light source apparatus.
The projector disclosed in JP-A-2007-157548 is such that light emitted from the LED chips is guided to a light guiding device of a predetermined length by adjusting the luminous intensity distribution characteristics of light of the respective colors emitted from the LED chips using luminous intensity distribution members which differ according to the luminous intensity distribution characteristics of the light of the respective colors so emitted so as to enhance the efficiency of utilization of light. However, the projector is not designed to suppress the occurrence of unevenness in illuminance of light in a predetermined plane on to which the light is shone from the light guiding device.